


siderodromophobia

by alderations



Series: Whumptober/Mechtober 2020 [18]
Category: The Mechanisms (Band)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Mechtober, Other, Panic Attacks, Phobias, Trains, Whumptober 2020, tho actually idk if lyf counts as having a phobia when theyve been. yknow. traumatized by trains
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:08:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27097072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alderations/pseuds/alderations
Summary: It’s not until they’re all passing under the bridge that Lyf realizes what it’s actually for. They hear something rumbling, distant and then suddenly very close, shaking the ground and the air and everything around them. When they look up, between the metal beams overhead, they spy the undercarriage of a train passing by in rapid flashes. Nothing about the train seems unusual—it’s sleek silver metal, dulled by city grime and chugging along fast enough that it disappears in a matter of seconds. The roaring in Lyf’s head, however, doesn’t leave.(Whumptober Day 18: phobias/panic attacks; Mechtober Day 16-18: domestic mechs)
Relationships: Lyfrassir Edda/Marius von Raum
Series: Whumptober/Mechtober 2020 [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1950916
Comments: 11
Kudos: 101
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	siderodromophobia

“I really should’ve asked for them to be pointy.”

Nastya rolls her eyes, speeding up her already lengthy strides so that she’s not right next to Jonny as he complains. “You don’t need any  _ more  _ weapons attached to your body.”

“None of the others are  _ attached!  _ I just think I deserve knives,” Jonny complains, turning his hand over and over as he examines the decidedly blunt edges of his new acrylics. Despite the surprising amount of effort that he puts into his nails, he’s never had them done professionally, and since the crew tries to avoid any timestream-breaking violence while on Earth, there’s never been a better time for mundane firsts like this one.

A few paces behind him, Lyf casually loops their arm through Marius’s and tilts their head against his shoulder. “Why do I feel like we never should’ve let Jonny have this much power?”

“Power? What power? He’s  _ far  _ less likely to murder anyone if he has to put active effort into not breaking his nails,” Marius reminds them.

Lyf chuckles, watching Jonny jog to catch up with Nastya and attempt to stab her with his newfound weapons. It’s a brilliantly sunny day, so Nastya sparkles in the light like an ill-conceived concept of a vampire, until she ducks into the shade of an old steel bridge that passes over the road.

It’s not until they’re all passing under the bridge that Lyf realizes what it’s actually for. They hear something rumbling, distant and then suddenly  _ very  _ close, shaking the ground and the air and everything around them. When they look up, between the metal beams overhead, they spy the undercarriage of a train passing by in rapid flashes. Nothing about the train seems unusual—it’s sleek silver metal, dulled by city grime and chugging along fast enough that it disappears in a matter of seconds. The roaring in Lyf’s head, however, doesn’t leave.

They’re not sure how much time passes before they realize that they’ve frozen in one place, staring out at the road next to the sidewalk and gripping Marius’s elbow like it’s their last link to reality. They can’t get themself to move. Their hands feel unnaturally hot, almost clammy with sweat, and their ears are still ringing with what  _ should  _ be the echo of the retreating train but is, undoubtedly, something worse.

“Lyf?” Marius asks, when he realizes that he can’t walk any farther without letting go of their arm.

It takes every ounce of willpower in them, but they turn to look at him. Their hands are trembling. There’s no way they can speak right now, but hopefully Marius will understand… they’re not even sure what.

His brow furrows as he studies their face, before stepping close into their bubble so that all they can see is him. “What’s wrong, Inspector?”

Most of the time, he only calls them that when he’s messing with them, which means he’s probably trying to get a laugh out of them. Lyf could not be farther from laughing. They shake their head, because that’s what they can manage, then wince as a car rolls by next to them.

“It’s… oh. It’s the train, isn’t it?”

Lyf feels so,  _ so _ small under this bridge. Fuck, they’re so tiny and the steel and stone and wood are so  _ heavy  _ and what if another train comes by and the bridge collapses and they’re trapped under here, forget the fact that they’re immortal, what if they get  _ trapped  _ and—

“Lyf. Hey.” Marius rests his free hand on their shoulder, leaving them room to pull away if they want to, but the weight brings some part of them back to the present moment. “Let’s get out from under the bridge, alright? I see a restaurant up there with a little vestibule thingy. Come on.”

He detangles his elbow from their grip and wraps his arm around their waist instead, nearly stumbling when they lean into him. They’re not all that aware of where they are, but Marius is here, and that can’t be too bad. Well, unless another train  _ does  _ crush them. Marius doesn’t get how much danger they’re in. “The train,” they try, “the train is… is…”

“It’s okay, love. Just a few more steps.”

Lyf tries to articulate how  _ awful  _ it will be if the bridge collapses, but they can’t get another word out, and then they’re standing in the sun next to a sparkly Nastya and a pouty Jonny as Marius ushers them into the restaurant as promised. It’s a little Thai place with a fun variety of potted plants in the window. Jonny mumbles something about bubble tea and disappears into the restaurant proper. “What’s going on?” Nastya questions Marius.

“Train,” is all Marius says, not that this explains anything to Nastya. “Lyf, are you with me?”

The assorted sounds of city life are muffled in here, which makes it easier to focus on Marius’s voice and the solidity of his arm around them. “It—it could’ve collapsed on us.”

“It… yeah, honestly, I’m not sure who decided that putting trains  _ above  _ everything else was a good idea,” Marius admits.

Lyf bonks their head against his shoulder. “Feels stupid to worry about that and not… eldritch bullshit.” The words make sense to them, but they don’t begin to explain the terror still gripping their heart and shaking through every inch of them. “Just a stupid regular train. No—no bismuth or anything.”

“No sense of style,” Marius deadpans. Lyf doesn’t laugh, but Nastya does.

Jonny emerges a moment later with a coconut bubble tea, then offers a sip to Lyf when he gets a good look at their face. “Hey, hey, I didn’t say you could have any of the tapioca,” he grumbles.

They hand the drink back over and stick their tongue out at him. Nastya looks proud.

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so I had a kinda shitty day (fun exciting new Symptoms Disorders bullshit huzzah) so I literally just plucked a memory from when I was like 5 and wrote it cuz why the fuck not. tho also shoutout to Marius (my boyfriend not the character) for suggesting Lyf being scared of trains cuz somehow, despite me being TERRIFIED of trains, I hadn't thought of that!! Anyway, I know there's absolutely no logical reason for the Mechs to be in Modern Earth Chicago, but I don't care. And also I think Jonny deserves little a acrylic nails as a treat. also omfg im so sorry that i am so terrible at ending these but it is Bedtime
> 
> If you haven't already been chased away by my blatant self-indulgence, consider leaving a comment? I'm on tumblr @alderations just vibing in my little corner. I post pictures of my snakes sometimes.
> 
> ...also I just read a BUCK WILD paragraph in the wikipedia article on fear of trains and for once I actually think psychoanalysts might be onto something /j /j /j


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